Farmers and ranchers rallied outside the legislature in Edmonton at noon on Friday to protest proposed safety legislation and many say if Bill 6 is passed it will be the end of family farms.

They are calling on the NDP government to stop Bill 6, which is legislation that would cover farm and ranch workers under Occupational Health and Safety rules.

Regulations around wages, hours of work, insurance and even where children can be on the family farm are all seen as potential threats to a business and a lifestyle that is already under pressure.

A group called farmers against NDP Bill 6 posted a petition on Facebook earlier this week opposing the legislation and many say the province should have separate rules for small family farms and larger commercial operations.

“We’re not upset about safety, we want to be safe, we want our kids to be safe but this isn’t the way to do it. This affects a lot more, not all farms are really big farms that have multiple employees, a lot of us are families and our kids work and husbands work, wives work, grandparents work,” said Kate Dewindt.

Mable and Gavin Hamilton raised their family and thousands of cattle on their farm east on Bowden and say the bill will threaten 100 years of family history.

“I worry about our lifestyle and how it will change us and make us do things that will actually be costly to us,” said Mabel. ”It’s not a who pays who or who's worried about what contract, it’s about getting the job done as efficiently as you can.”

Alberta is currently the only province without the legislation and the government says life on the family farm shouldn’t change that much under the new rules.

"Because people live on the farms, but that doesn’t mean you can’t go help your neighbours all that is still totally fine on farms. We just want to create safety," said Lori Sigurdson, Minister of Jobs, Skills and Labour.

The province would not commit to different rules for different types of farming operations and has scheduled a number of public consultations for Albertans to voice their opinions and request additional meetings.

Opposition parties in the province say the consultation process is too little too late and makes a false promise to Albertans.

“Magically having this legislation is going to save lives and save injuries, it’s not true,” said PC Leader Ric McIver.

The recent deaths of four children in farm accidents has increased the call for action but many in agriculture say those kinds of incidents cannot be completely eliminated and that education is making a difference.

“We’ve been at it 17 plus years and we reach children province-wide about 50,000 a year,” said Laura Nelson from the Farm Safety Centre.

AltaLink just announced a $1.5 M donation to the Calgary Stampede, in part to support farm safety.

“To help our kids across southern Alberta really understand the risks and the ways to avoid risks when working on the farm,” said Scott Thon, Ceo AltaLink

On average, 16 Albertans are killed on the farm each year.

For more information on Bill 6, click HERE or scroll the document below.